20:16 “You shall not give 4 false testimony 5 against your neighbor.
15:3 He 6 does not slander, 7
or do harm to others, 8
or insult his neighbor. 9
101:5 I will destroy anyone who slanders his neighbor in secret.
I will not tolerate anyone who has a cocky demeanor and an arrogant attitude. 10
9:4 Everyone must be on his guard around his friends.
He must not even trust any of his relatives. 11
For every one of them will find some way to cheat him. 12
And all of his friends will tell lies about him.
1 tn Heb “son.”
2 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
3 tn Heb “my father’s.”
4 tn Heb “answer” as in a court of law.
5 tn The expression עֵד שָׁקֶר (’ed shaqer) means “a lying witness” (B. S. Childs, Exodus [OTL], 388). In this verse the noun is an adverbial accusative, “you will not answer as a lying witness.” The prohibition is against perjury. While the precise reference would be to legal proceedings, the law probably had a broader application to lying about other people in general (see Lev 5:1; Hos 4:2).
6 sn Hebrew literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age.
7 tn Heb “he does not slander upon his tongue.” For another example of רָגַל (ragal, “slander”) see 2 Sam 19:28.
8 tn Or “his fellow.”
9 tn Heb “and he does not lift up an insult against one who is near to him.”
10 tn Heb “[one who has] pride of eyes and wideness [i.e., arrogance] of heart, him I will not endure.”
11 tn Heb “Be on your guard…Do not trust.” The verbs are second masculine plural of direct address and there seems no way to translate literally and not give the mistaken impression that Jeremiah is being addressed. This is another example of the tendency in Hebrew style to turn from description to direct address (a figure of speech called apostrophe).
12 tn Heb “cheating, each of them will cheat.”